Kittery panel releases report urging transparency

Wednesday

Sep 18, 2013 at 2:00 AM

KITTERY, Maine — A citizens group formed after the January resignations of two top town officials concluded at least one Town Council member violated the town charter, and it urged the council to be more transparent and accountable to the public in the future.

Deborah McDermott

KITTERY, Maine — A citizens group formed after the January resignations of two top town officials concluded at least one Town Council member violated the town charter, and it urged the council to be more transparent and accountable to the public in the future.

In its 11-page report released this week, the Kittery Steering Committee also calls for the formation of a Kittery Police Commission.

Committee members began the interviews in the wake of the resignations of former Town Manager Robert Markel and former Police Chief Paul Callaghan. Callaghan resigned after Kittery police officers took a vote of no confidence in his leadership. At least seven grievances were also filed against him by the patrolmen's and sergeants' unions.

In the end, committee members wrote, "It is the KSC's opinion that there is no single cause for the dual resignations but rather a confluence of management problems."

The report is based on interviews with one former and five sitting Town Council members, as well as Markel. Police officers declined to be interviewed by the committee, which according to the report "leaves a critical gap in our attempt to gain a better understanding of what happened."

Committee members said they did not approach Callaghan for an interview. They said later that they assumed he would decline, as he chose not to release a consultant's report written at the time, calling it a personnel matter.

Key among its findings, the committee reported that Councilor Jeff Brake violated the charter by "giving a direct order to the manager 'The chief has to go, you have to fire the chief.'" Under town charter, the council has no authority over who the town manager hires as department heads.

Markel reported that the comment was made, and Councilors Judy Spiller and Jeff Thomson said they overheard Brake make the statement. Brake denied the allegation to the Herald at the time and denied to the committee that he made the comment.

As the report makes clear, committee members were disturbed by the comment.

"The committee recommends that the council show a greater readiness, if legally possible, to publicly discuss and, if necessary, reprimand councilors who 'skate' too closely, directly or indirectly, to compromising the integrity of the Town Charter," the report states.

Committee members also bemoan that police "are not subject to the same public accountability as elected officials." In a section clearly marked "Opinion," the committee wonders if the department "was still struggling with a negative public perception (founded or false) based on past history." They refer specifically to the tenure of former Police Chief Edward Strong, who was often a controversial figure.

On the other hand, interviews indicate that Callaghan came in with an agenda. Markel said he suggested the former chief did not communicate sufficiently with union stewards or give enough advance notice to the police before implementing new policies.

There "were (areas) of poor management of the department," the report states. "We feel it is appropriate to ask: 'Had the new chief attempted to do too much too soon without full discussions with police officers?'"

The committee encourages the council to create a police commission "to provide some oversight and promote transparency and accountability. ... The KPD needs to be viewed by the public it serves as beyond politics as well as free of real or perceived conflicts of interest."

Requests for comment by police were not returned Tuesday. Council Chairman George Dow said he would not comment on the report unless the committee presents it to the council.

Committee Chairman Gene Cosloy said the committee intends to send copies of the report to councilors, but at this point, there are no plans to meet with them.

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